SUMMARY FOR EUROPE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12600, 2 March 1903, Page 1 (Supplement)

SUMMARY FOR EUROPE.

POLITICAL AND GENERAL. Humours of a pending reconstruction of Ihe 'Ministry are still in the air, notwithstanding the denial of the Premier of any such intention. That Mr Seddon will not get matters all his own way when Parliament meets is an open secret, as several prominent members have indicated in the course of • press interviews. Consequently, it is quite ■ on the cards that the hand of. the Premier may be forced in the matter • of. Cabinet reconstruction, especially; as the feeling very general that there are several members of the Cabinet who are far from, qualified for the positions they hold. Naturally, tk Labour vote will count for a good deal when the matter comes up fot discussion. Then there is certain to he a determined attempt 'on the part of the North Island division of the House of Representatives to secure fuller, representation in the .Government.;' Altogether, Cabinet matters promise io give the Premier a< more than usually anxious' time when the session opens. Recently the finances of the colony have come in for a good deal of criticism, which lias been accentuated by the unfavourable results of the million and a-quarter loan on the LondoA money market.*-Mr W. Fraser, has subjected the finance of the Seddon Government to some trenchant criticism, which called forth a spirited reply from Sir J. G. Ward. The burden of Mr Eraser's contention is the rate at which the annual appropriations are mounting'up. Reckless expenditure is the rock ahead--the- ne\v • Parliament will have to set itself the task of avoiding. The Premier .has pointed out that th* current financial year will close with' a surplus of at least a quarter of a million. Under the circumstances considerable disappointment is experienced at the failure of the last New Zealand loan. The public accounts for the 10 months of the financial year iliow substantial increases over the corresponding period of the previous year in' ihost of the important items of revenue, such as Customs, railways, stamps, income tax, registration, and other fees. There wero tJecreases shown in oome items, but the increase for the 10 months shows an excess over the corresponding period of last year'of £228,646, which must be considered • eminently- satisfactory. The "Premier still'believes in a preferential .tariff with, the Mother Country. Recently at Auckland lie stated that Parliament would be asked to provide for a preferential tariff with Great -Britain and reciprocity between the. colonies.' He also indicated that it would be necessary to pass legislation affecting the Bank of New Zealand, which, as is well known, has been carrying on business under State guarantees for several years. Mr Seddon did not indicate in what particular direction the proposed legislation would affect the bank. He, however, made a passing reference to the opinion held in,some quarters that the Bank of New Zealand should be made a State bank; and others that the Government should retain control of the bank;"and yet others that the amount guaranteed by the colony should be .'Oliver ted' into bank capital, and the colony in that extent would become a partner in the concern.. All of these views. -Mr Seddon said were worthy of consideration, .bub'be gave.no indication as .'to,, his'own' opinions in the matter. Local option affairs, have been carried a step''further in the law courts, and so far the results have almost invariably been to' uphold' the verdict of the people declared at the polls. The exception is the Newtown case, in which the magistrate has decided in favour of the a,pp'eal made by- the Liquor party. The Mataura petition to upset the poll on the allegation of certain' irregularities' in' the conduct of the'poll has been dismissed. The decision in the Bruce case has not as yet been given,].but' it. seems improbable that the result of the licensing poll will bs reversed. That being so, prohibition of the licensed sale of-intoiioating liquors will hold over an extended area on both sides of the Clutha district, which has been under prohibition fir nine years.' The results of magisterial decisions, in other districts are awaited with interest. Lord Hawke's team of English cricketers have- been making a triumphal tour through the colony, as far as success in the various matches played is concerned. Tlit following are the results of the tour: — December 19, 20, and 22.—Against Auckland: Won by an innings and 129 runs. Englishmen, 321" rims; Auckland, 120 and 72 runs. 'December 30 and 31.—Against South Taraliaki (18)': "Won by nine -wickets. Englishmen, 157.and 30 for one wicket; Taranaki, 146 and 38. _ _ January 1 and 2.—Against North Taianaki (18):' "Won by an innings and 202 runs. Englishmen, 320; North Taranaki, 88 and 131. January 3 and s.—Against WaMganui (15): Won by seven wickets. Englishmen, 140 and 59 for three wickets; Wanganui,-120 and 77. January .7 and B.—Against Manawatu (18): Won by an innings and 130 runs. Englishmen closed with eight wickets for 307; Manawatu, 105 and 72. January 10, 12, and 13.—Against Hawke'B Bay (15)': Won by an innings and 198 runs. Englishmen, 461; Hawke's Bay, 106 and 157. January 15,16, and 17.—Against Wellington: Won by 10 wickets. Englishmen, 289 and 97 for no wickets; Wellington, 243 and 140. ' January 20 and 21.—Against Wairarapa (22): Won by an innings and 91 runs. Englishmen, 4QS for seven wickets; Waitarapa, 205 and 119. January 23 and 24.—Against Marlborough (22): Won by nine wickets. Englishmen, 205 and one wicket for 18; Marlborough, 59 and 162. January 27 and 28.—Against Nelson (18): Won by an innings and 80 runs. Englishmen, 185; Nelson, 28 and 77 runs. ; January 31 and February 2.—Against Westland.'(22): Won by five wickets. Englishmen, 69 and 106 for five wickets; Westland, 111 and 6, 7, and g.-Against Canterbury (11): Won. by 133 runs. Englishmen, 352 and 159 for seven wickets; Canterbury, 224 and February 33 and 14.—Against Otago (11): Won by.an innings and 230 runs. Englishmen, 473; Otago, 124 and 119. February 18 and 19,-Against Southland (15): Won by* seven wickets. Englishmen, 107 and 87 for three wickets; Southland, 87 and 104. February 21 sad 23.-Against South Island (11): Won by an innings and 130 runs. English- . men, 314; South Island, 51 and 133. Madame Melba, the Australian Queen of Song, has been accorded a magnificent reception throughout her New Zealand tour. The public in each centre nas had to be content with a single concert. NeedJess to say, these concerts attracted very large audiences. The Otago Early Settlers' Association, wHich was formed at the time of the celebration of the jubilee of Otago to keep green amongst their descendants the memory of the pioneers who laid the foundations of the colony's progress here, has been very active of late. Reunions of those of the pioneer settlers who still remain in the land of the living, and of their descendants, have been held this month St Wingatui (near Mosgiel) and at Milton, while still another picnic is to be held at Waikouaiti, which dates back to pre»ettlement days for its foundation, when a batch of .settlers came over from Sydney jn connection with the whaling industry that was in full swing at the .time. A monster, baaaar and carnival is being orgacised by the association to- raise funds for Hie purpose of erecting a suitable building wherein-to housr-tbe yaluable early records

that are being gathered together, and for other purposes in connection with the association. Of the pioneer settlers who landed on these wild shores, now 55 years ago, not many remain to view with pride the record of their achievement. Consequently every annual reunion becomes an increasingly precious function to the original pioneers. An epidemic, variously certified to by medical men as German measles and scarlet fever, has swept the colony. The epidemic was apparently introduced by the returned troops from South Africa, as a good many cases occurred on board ship, and ever since the disease has been rife in the colony. The mildness of the epidemic, together with the small death rate, would seem to indicate that the disease is not scarlet fever, although the symptoms are practically the same, and the virulence of its infection is not one whit less. In consequence of this an attempt has been made to restrict the spread of . the disease by the erection of fever hospitals. In the case of persons living in boarding-houses the fever hecpital is a necessity, and in the case of the Caversham Industrial- School the epidemic was prevehted going through the whole school by isolating a number of cases in the temporary fever hospital. By a disastrous fire on the morning of the 9th ult. the cable tramway service to Mornington was destroyed. The origin of the fire is a complete mystery. The tram service was suspended on Sundays, and from Saturday night until the fire occurred in the early hours of Monday morning there was no fire about the premises. At anyrate, the fire originated in the office, where there would have been neither light nor fire during the time the tramslied was closed. The power house, with the whole of the plant, including the cars (with a single exception), was destroyed, besides three dwelling houses and a store adjacent thereto. A strong wind was blowing at the time, and as there is neither water service nor fire brigndc at Jlofnington the consequences would have been much more serious had not .the timely arrival of the Dunedin City Fire Brigade, with a manual engine, been instrumental in quenching the fire. A lupply of water sufficient for t-h' purpose was, fortunately, available in a large concrete cellar near at hand; otherwise, it is probable that the whole block of about a dozen dwelling houses would have been destroyed. The "loss of the tram service, which cannot he replaced for some months, is, perhaps, quite as serious as the actual monetary loss on the property destroyed, and which was only partially insured. The initial step in the construction (if an electric tram service for Dunedin City and the level suburbs was taken on the 26th ult., when the ccremony of turning the first sod of the tramline near the Botanical Gardens was performed by his Worship the Mayor in the presence of a number of councillors and representative citizens. It is anticipated that the service will be inaugurated in the city in about nine months' time, and extended to the suburbs as speedily after that as possible. When completed, Dunedin will possess an up-to-date electric tram service, under municipal control, which will prove 1 an enormous boon to oui 1 city and rapidlyexpanding suburbs. A complete drainage scheme is another improvement in the city and suburbs that will soon be in progress. Preliminary surveys have been made by .the "Drainage Board's engineer, and as soon as these have been reviewed by consulting engineers, appointed for the purpose, the necessary work will be gone on with. Under I the proposed scheme the sewage of the :ity will be discharged into the ocean direct, instead of into the harbour, as hitherto. In connection with harbour improvements it is satisfactory to note that the channel ■between the Heads and Dunedin shows signs of deepening by tidal scour. The minimum depth over a portion of the channel is between 16ft and 17ft at low water, spring tides, while in other parts over 20ft of water occurs. In consequence of that fact the engineer has decided that all future dredging shall be down to 20ft. Large steamers, drawing 20ft. of water, can come right up to Dunedin now and berth at the wharves. Only quite-recently the largest steamer , of the Union Company's fleet—the s.s. Aparima, a vessel of some 8000 tons gross—was berthed at the cross wharf, Dunedin. ' The direct subsidised steam service to South Africa is not meeting in with the measure of patronage its importance merits. There are several factors which contribute to this result. The delay in initiating the service caused exporters to seek an outlet through Australian channels, for one thing; and, for another, the good prices ruling in the nearer Australian market have induced producers to send their produce there. The steamers supplying the service are allowed to call at any port offering 500 tons of produce, and no doubt when the Australian demand eases off greater attention, will be paid to South African markets. By the death of the Hon. William Rolleston the colony loses a pioneer settler and politician who, throughout a long and notable career, did yeoman service. Landing in Canterbury in 1858, Mr Rolleston soon began to take part in public affairs. He oegan his public career in 1863, when' he was appointed to the Canterbury Education Commission. He was elected to the Board of Education in 1864, and was Superintendent of the Province of Canterbury in 1866 and again in 1874, on both occasions being returned unopposed. -His parliamentary career began in 1868, when lie was elected to represent the Avon district in the General Assembly. He represented that constituency continuously till 1884. The Hon. W. Rolleston joined the Hall Ministry in 1879 as Minister of Justice, Education/ Lands, and Immigration. In public life Mr Rolleston took a very active part in education and land administration, and his successors have profited by Bis labours in both these departments. The Boer delegates, sent out to these colonies to view improved methods of farming, have been touring New' Zealand, under the guidance of the Secretary of Agriculture. The delegates have expressed surprise at the excellent methods of agriculture they have seen, and no doubt will carry with them to South Africa a knowledge of improved methods that will be helpful to that country in the future. Burglaries and daylight robberies have been rife throughout the colony of late. It is a new state of society for us, and points to an influx of undesirable characters from elsewhere. Quite recently our usually peaceful city was startled by a daring and desperate daylight robbery, perpetrated in a public thoroughfare. On the afternoon of the 16th ult. a pay clerk was carrying in a handbag some £280 odd, wherewith to pay the hands in Messrs Sargood's boot factory, and when proceeding along a quiet thoroughfare near the Dunedin Railway Station he was felled by a bludgeon, or some equally lethal weapon. The thief or thieves made off with their spoil in a spring cart, which was handy to the spot, and which

had been previously stolen from auOutram farmer.. The unconscious clerk was taken to the Hospital, where, for a time, his recovery seemed doubtful. In connection with the robbery two arrests have been made.